ACCA endorsed and valued by employers in different sectors

Tuesday, 24 June 2014 00:01 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) has continued to experience robust growth globally. It has also been proved that ACCA graduates can serve in any number of sectors and size of organisation. A key reason is the breadth and depth of finance capabilities that is covered by the ACCA qualification. Emulating this factor was a number of employers who are also ACCA members who pointed out the benefits they have experienced through hiring ACCA graduates into their organisations. HNB Bank PLC Chief Operating Officer Dilshan Rodrigo explained: “The environment in which finance professionals now work is one which is increasingly volatile, complex and competitive, that requires them to have a broader range of finance skills. This includes supporting businesses, managing risk, developing effective strategies for growth, driving financial insight and ensuring statutory and regulatory responsibilities are met. A strong grounding in accountancy, finance and management as well as the regulatory and legal context is what gives me confidence in new hires. This I have found to be the case with ACCA graduates whose commercial and business skills learnt throughout the qualification are in line with the current demands of employers.” Another viewpoint shared by The Capital Maharaja Group PLC Group Director Srilal Ahangama was: “The CFO of today is an integral part of the planning, implementation, troubleshooting and performance monitoring processes. As qualified ACCAs will have acquired these competencies during their training, they are best suited to playing a leading role in influencing corporate strategy and driving change.” Chanakya Dissanayake, CFA Director, Country Head – Sri Lanka Copal Amba (A Moody’s Subsidiary), stated: “Companies need to encourage finance and accounting to spend time on more innovative activities outside of reporting, compliance and budgeting which helps bring significant value to the company. I have found that these are factors that the ACCA qualification emulates and hence our organisation has large teams of ACCA graduates that have brought immense value to the organisation through their expertise.” KPMG Sri Lanka Partner Suren Rajakarier said; “When employers consider recruitment in finance functions they would like to see a well-rounded personality with interpersonal skills, abilities, knowledge and experience. They want to be sure that they are recruiting the right person for a particular role, someone who will grow and flourish and who can become a valued member of the team. They are no longer just financial stewards of the company, but are being asked to take on more strategic responsibilities and participate in decision-making processes, acting as advisors and decision makers, helping their CEOs navigate the fast-changing economic environment. Hence they need to not only excel in core finance activities, but to advise also on strategic and operational matters. The ACCA qualification very comprehensively prepares students to take on such roles, so that they are in a position to be a strategist and a trusted advisor to their non-finance colleagues, assisting in constructive discussions that help make finance sense out of the business propositions. This is the reason that ACCA members today hold management positions such as chief executive officers, executive directors, general managers and commercial directors, in addition to core finance positions, as they have better multi-functional knowledge and experience.” ACCA Sri Lanka Head Nilusha Ranasinghe commented: “These endorsements have proven that the ACCA qualification opens up truly mobile career options across sectors and borders and that many of our members have been able to benefit from flexible and fulfilling career paths to suit their aspirations.”